Internet providers sell their service in tiers based on speed. But they don't always meet that advertised speed, and often note in the fine print that speeds may vary, so they don't box themselves into actually providing that top speed all the time. Now there's evidence that they are getting closer to doing so.

The Federal Communications Commission issued a report this month that shows on average, most service providers, including Verizon, AT&T and Comcast, are providing faster speeds than they were last year.

You'll notice that not all providers improved. Those that slipped include Windstream and Frontier.

The improvements follow a report a few years ago in which the FCC lamented the fact that actual Internet speeds lagged well below advertised peak speeds, something the Watchdog found was happening locally.